Pete Hegseth is hanging on for now...
On Tuesday night, the House of Representatives shut down an attempt to impeach the defense secretary. He scraped by with a margin of just seven votes.
Rep. Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican who lost his primary earlier this year, introduced the articles of impeachment. His main focus was on the war in Iran.
Hegseth isn't out of the woods yet. Come January, the Democratic party will take control of both chambers of Congress. If he's impeached next year, he'll be just the third Cabinet secretary in U.S. history to face that charge.
We're not here to give our opinions on Hegseth or the impeachment, though. We're just here to discuss the facts as they pertain to investors.
And the fact is, the folks who decide everything from impeachment to defense budgets to tech-industry rules are changing... and the market will change, too.
Hegseth's potential impeachment is all part of a larger picture that's shaping today's topsy-turvy environment. Investors are trying to figure out what these new political tides mean for stocks.
Whether you agree with it or not, this shakeup in Washington is a major turning point for your portfolio...
Just owning tech has been enough for years...
The Nasdaq 100 Index, which holds the 100 biggest nonfinancial companies on the Nasdaq exchange, more than doubled in the three years through mid-October.
That's compound annual growth of about 26% per year, compared with the stock market's long-term average of roughly 10%.
Folks didn't need to pick "winners." It was enough to own tech and wait.
But that long-held wisdom is starting to wobble...
Stocks rallied the day after the midterms. The day after that, the Nasdaq 100 plunged 6.4% on worries that the new Congress could slow the AI data center build-out. It was the market's worst day in more than a year.
Wall Street's "fear gauge" – the CBOE Volatility Index ("VIX") – told the same story. It uses options prices to measure how much investors expect stocks to swing over the next month.
It jumped to 28 last Thursday... well above the three-year average of just 16. That was the highest reading in more than seven months.
Take a look...
The spike in fear didn't last long. The VIX is back down to about 17. By this past Tuesday, the Nasdaq 100 had won back more than half of its Thursday loss.
Investors were preparing for a bumpy ride. The market has delivered.
Uncertainty makes stocks jumpy...
Remember, a stock price is a bet on a company's future profits. The rules that shape those earnings are now up for grabs. Investors aren't sure what's coming next... so stocks are swinging harder in both directions.
And that means the end of a market that paid you just for owning tech.
Washington's choices are moving prices overnight. With a new Congress arriving in January, we don't expect that volatility to settle down anytime soon.
One trend alone cannot carry your portfolio. It's clear that a mood shift is taking place. Folks are starting to question the underpinnings of the tech boom.
That's why I've teamed up with Brett Eversole of our sister company Stansberry Research to sound the alarm...
Brett and I believe a crash is looming. And it could make last week's sell-off look like an ordinary day on Wall Street.
I haven't seen a market like this in 25 years. It's signaling a major turning point for U.S. stocks.
Our "Financial Survival Summit" goes live on Thursday, November 19. We'll share our critical warning for investors... and the stocks to avoid as it all plays out. Reserve your spot for free right here.
Washington isn't waiting for anyone. Your survival plan shouldn't, either.
Regards,
Joel Litman
November 13, 2026
